Investigators Return to 417 W. Chew Avenue as Search of Philadelphia House Enters New Phase - Update

UPDATE — October 3, 2026

Investigators Now Suspect Philadelphia Homeowner Was a Serial Killer

The investigation into 417 West Chew Avenue in Philadelphia has taken a major new turn.

Multiple law-enforcement sources told CBS News Philadelphia on October 2 that investigators now consider Raymond “R.C.” Horsch, who lived at the property before his death in 2025, a suspected serial killer. At least seven missing women have been linked to the house, and investigators fear that at least five of them are dead.

Philadelphia police and the FBI have already returned to the property and are preparing for a much more intensive forensic search beginning October 5. Investigators are expected to examine and remove portions of the flooring, walls, drywall and plaster, guided in part by evidence discovered while reviewing more than one million photographs and videos recovered from the residence.

Authorities have stressed that the investigation remains ongoing. No human remains associated with the five women believed to be depicted deceased have been recovered, and the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office has said that without remains it cannot conclusively determine a cause or manner of death.

The renewed search of 417 West Chew Avenue is expected to continue through at least October 16 and potentially longer, making the property the center of one of Philadelphia’s most closely watched ongoing criminal investigations.

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UPDATE — Major Forensic Search Set for Monday

October 2, 2026 — Investigators are preparing for a more intensive forensic examination of 417 W. Chew Avenue beginning Monday, October 5.

CBS News Philadelphia reports that investigators plan to use what they have learned from the massive collection of digital evidence to guide the next phase of the physical search. That could include removing flooring, drywall, plaster and other portions of the house as authorities examine specific areas more closely.

The timing is significant because investigators have already spent months searching the property and reviewing evidence. Monday's operation represents a shift from documenting the house to physically examining parts of the structure that investigators now believe warrant additional attention.

The case is also drawing renewed national attention. The Guardian published an extensive report on October 2 examining the history of 417 W. Chew Avenue and the unanswered questions surrounding the women connected to the investigation.

What investigators find — or don't find — during this next phase could determine where the investigation goes from here.

DiedInHouse will continue updating this article as verified information becomes available.

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Initial Article:

Seven missing women have been linked to the investigation surrounding the Olney property, while five women depicted in recovered evidence appear to be deceased. Authorities say no human remains associated with those five women have been recovered.

By Roy Condrey
Published September 28, 2026 at 04:56 PM EDT

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF)

Investigators returned to 417 W. Chew Avenue in Philadelphia on September 28, 2026, for another extensive search of the house. Seven missing women are now linked to the broader investigation, and police say five women shown in recovered photos and videos appear to be deceased, although their remains have not been found. Investigators have identified 58 women in the recovered material and are reviewing more than one million digital files. The latest search could involve removing walls, flooring and other parts of the house as authorities look for additional evidence. Police have not established that the five women died inside the house, and Eugene Horsch has not been charged with their deaths.

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Investigators returned Monday to 417 W. Chew Avenue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, beginning another extensive search of the house at the center of an extraordinary investigation involving missing women and more than one million digital files.

The renewed search marks a significant development in a case DiedInHouse first reported on earlier this month.

According to CBS News Philadelphia, investigators returned to the Olney property as authorities prepared for another phase of the investigation that could involve heavy construction equipment.

This time, investigators may go much deeper into the physical structure of the house.

Authorities could remove walls, flooring and other portions of the property while searching for evidence and attempting to determine what happened inside 417 W. Chew Avenue.

The new search comes as the scope of the investigation has expanded significantly.

Seven missing women have now been linked to the broader investigation. Police have identified 58 women depicted in recovered photographs and videos, and five women shown in the digital evidence appear to be deceased.

But there is an important distinction:

No human remains associated with those five women have been recovered.

And investigators have not established that those women died inside 417 W. Chew Avenue.

Those unanswered questions are part of what has brought investigators back to the house.

More Than One Million Digital Files

Investigators have been examining an enormous collection of digital evidence recovered during the investigation surrounding 417 W. Chew Avenue.

The Philadelphia Police Department announced that investigators had identified additional women in recovered photographs and videos who appeared to be deceased.

The Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office reviewed images involving five women.

Police said the Medical Examiner advised that, assuming the images are authentic and unaltered, the women depicted appear to be deceased.

Without physical remains, however, authorities cannot conclusively determine their causes or manners of death.

That distinction is essential.

This investigation has generated considerable attention and speculation, but what investigators can prove remains different from what the recovered images may appear to show.

No Remains From the Five Women Have Been Found

Despite months of investigation, excavation and searches surrounding the property, Philadelphia police said no human remains associated with the five women have been recovered.

Investigators therefore have not established exactly what happened to them, where they died or where their remains may be.

Police continue working to authenticate the recovered digital evidence.

That process is complicated by the background of Raymond "R.C." Horsch, who previously lived at the property and died in 2025.

Horsch was a photographer, filmmaker and writer whose work included fictional material involving violent themes.

Investigators therefore face an unusual challenge: determining which recovered photographs, videos and writings may have been staged or fictional and which, if any, document actual events.

The Philadelphia Inquirer has extensively documented the timeline of the Horsch investigation, including earlier searches of the Chew Avenue property and the evidence investigators encountered.

Why Investigators Are Searching 417 W. Chew Avenue Again

The digital evidence may now be helping investigators determine where to look physically inside the house.

Investigators returned to the property Monday with another search warrant.

According to 6abc Action News, the new phase could involve heavy construction equipment as investigators conduct a more intensive examination of the property.

That could include removing walls, flooring or other structural components while investigators search for evidence.

The operation is expected to continue beyond a single day.

For a property that investigators have already searched extensively, their return raises an obvious question:

What do authorities believe may still be inside 417 W. Chew Avenue?

How the Investigation Began

The investigation that eventually brought authorities back to the house began with an encounter involving Eugene Horsch on June 19, 2026.

Horsch, who owns 417 W. Chew Avenue, encountered law enforcement near Independence Hall.

The investigation initially involved alleged firearms and drug offenses.

But investigators subsequently discovered something that reopened questions surrounding a missing woman.

A woman accompanying Horsch reportedly possessed identification containing her photograph but the name of Blair Tonzelli, who had been reported missing in 2023.

That discovery ultimately led investigators back to 417 W. Chew Avenue.

According to reporting by CBS News Philadelphia, investigators have since connected multiple missing women to the broader investigation surrounding the property.

Blair Tonzelli and Amy McHale

Two of the missing women associated with the investigation are Blair Tonzelli and Amy McHale.

Tonzelli was reported missing in 2023.

Amy McHale disappeared in 2016 and had previously been married to Raymond Horsch.

McHale's family has said she was last seen at the Chew Avenue property.

Neither woman has been found.

The disappearance of these women is one reason investigators have continued examining both the property and the enormous amount of digital material recovered during the investigation.

Investigators Had Been Inside the House Before

Authorities had encountered 417 W. Chew Avenue before the current missing-person investigation became public.

On May 18, 2025, firefighters responded to a fire at the property.

That incident brought authorities into the house and led to the discovery of what investigators described as a substantial marijuana-growing operation.

At the time, the investigation focused primarily on drugs.

The significance of other information connected with the property would become apparent later.

The Philadelphia Inquirer's detailed investigation provides additional background on the sequence of events that ultimately transformed the Chew Avenue property into the center of a much larger investigation.

What Investigators Found at 417 W. Chew Avenue

Subsequent searches produced an enormous amount of evidence.

Authorities recovered computers, hard drives and other electronic devices containing photographs, videos and additional digital material now being examined.

Investigators also recovered firearms, drugs and other materials during searches connected with the case.

Earlier this summer, investigators excavated portions of the property and examined areas surrounding the house.

Despite that work, authorities did not recover the remains of the missing women.

That fact is one reason today's renewed search is so important.

Months after the investigation began, authorities still believe areas of 417 W. Chew Avenue warrant additional examination.

58 Women Identified

The scale of the digital investigation has continued to grow.

Police say they have identified 58 women depicted in photographs and videos recovered during the investigation.

Authorities have been attempting to locate those women and determine the circumstances under which the material was created.

Five women depicted in recovered evidence appear to be deceased.

Two other missing women — Blair Tonzelli and Amy McHale — have connections to the property and remain missing.

That brings the number of missing women linked to the broader investigation to seven.

But that number should not be misunderstood.

Authorities have not said seven women were killed at 417 W. Chew Avenue.

They have not recovered seven bodies from the property.

And Eugene Horsch has not been charged with killing any of the missing women.

He remains in federal custody in connection with gun and drug charges stemming from his June arrest.

A Philadelphia House at the Center of an Unfinished Investigation

When DiedInHouse first examined the history of 417 W. Chew Avenue, investigators were already attempting to unravel the property's connection to multiple missing women.

The story has changed considerably since then.

Police have now identified dozens of women depicted in recovered material.

Five women appearing in that evidence are believed by authorities to be deceased, assuming the images are authentic and unaltered.

Seven missing women have been linked to the broader investigation.

More than one million digital files are reportedly being examined.

And investigators are once again searching the house.

This time, they may physically dismantle portions of the structure as they attempt to match locations inside 417 W. Chew Avenue with scenes depicted in recovered evidence.

What Happened Inside 417 W. Chew Avenue?

For now, that question does not have a complete answer.

Investigators have evidence they are still authenticating.

They have missing women they are still trying to locate.

They have five women depicted in images who appear to be deceased but whose remains have not been recovered.

And they have a house they apparently believe still contains information worth searching for.

What investigators discover during this latest examination could help answer questions that have surrounded 417 W. Chew Avenue for months.

Until then, several facts remain important:

No human remains associated with the five women depicted as apparently deceased have been recovered.

Authorities have not established that those women died inside the house.

Eugene Horsch has not been charged with their deaths.

And the investigation remains active.

Anyone with information relevant to the investigation should contact the Philadelphia Police Department rather than attempting to investigate the property independently.

The Property-History Question

The investigation at 417 W. Chew Avenue also illustrates why the history attached to an address can matter to future buyers and renters.

A traditional home inspection examines the physical condition of a property. An appraisal helps determine value. Neither is designed to provide a comprehensive history of events associated with an address.

That is where property-history research can provide another layer of information.

DiedInHouse researches available records and other sources associated with residential addresses to help consumers learn more about a property's past before making a major housing decision.

Research the history of an address at DiedInHouse.com.

Previous DiedInHouse Coverage

For the earlier developments in this investigation, read:

417 W. Chew Avenue, Philadelphia — Missing Women Investigation and Property History

Sources and Further Reading

Philadelphia Police Department

CBS News Philadelphia — New Phase of Investigation at Chew Avenue House

6abc Action News — Investigation at Olney Home Enters New Phase

CBS News Philadelphia — Missing Women and Chew Avenue Investigation

The Philadelphia Inquirer — Timeline of the Eugene Horsch and Chew Avenue Investigation